At 11 a.m., Elyse and Gem raced off together from the starting point of a track. Elyse ran at an average speed of 3 m/s. Gem ran at an average speed of 4 m/s. Upon reaching the end of the track, Gem rested for 3 minutes. She then immediately ran back along the same route at 4 m/s. At 11.30 a.m., Elyse met Gem.
- Find the total distance covered by the two runners when they met each other. Express your answer in km.
- Find the length of the trail in km.
(a)
From 11 a.m. to 11.30 a.m. = 30 min
Duration that Elyse ran = 30 min
Duration that Gem ran = 30 - 3 = 27 min
1 min = 60 s
27 min = 27 x 60 = 1620 s
30 min = 30 x 60 = 1800 s
Distance that Elyse ran
= 3 x 1800
= 5400 m
Distance that Gem ran
= 4 x 1620
= 6480 m
Distance that Elyse and Gem ran
= 5400 + 6480
= 11880 m
1000 m = 1 km
11880 m = 11880 ÷ 1000 = 11.88 km
(b)
Length of the trail
= 11.88 ÷ 2
= 5.94 km
Answer(s): (a) 11.88 km; (b) 5.94 km